Lori E. Andrus

Andrus, a leader in the fight for equal pay, started Andrus Anderson with Jennie Lee Anderson in 2007. Andrus has nearly two decades of experience in battling corporate giants, working for women who deserve fair pay.

She recently negotiated a settlement with Farmers Insurance Group on behalf of their female attorney employees who allege they are paid less than the male attorneys, who do the same work.

“The wage gap has been diminishing over time, but in the past 10 years it has stagnated because men’s wages have declined,” said Andrus.

Her latest equal pay client is Ji-In Houck, a former Steptoe & Johnson LLP contract associate alleges that she did equal work as her male counterparts at the firm, but her salary was only a fraction of what her male peers made. Houck v. Steptoe, 17-CV04595 (C.D. Cal., filed June 22, 2017).

“Despite paying lip-service to diversity in its workforce, and even counseling the firm’s own clients on policies to avoid pay discrimination, defendant Steptoe & Johnson LLP...subjects its female attorneys to unequal pay,” the complaint read.

According to the complaint, the suit accuses Steptoe of violating the federal Equal Pay Act and California laws and seeks damages, along with court orders that would effect the firm’s pay and diversity policies.

Andrus specializes in class actions and complex litigation, representing individuals who have been harmed by medical devices or dangerous pharmaceuticals, sold defective products, or defrauded or discriminated against by large corporations.

In one of her most memorable litigation experiences, Andrus represented a class of crawfish farmers whose crops were killed by pesticides, ultimately settling for $45 million during trial.

Andrus has represented clients who have had to undergo full hysterectomies after developing serious medical issues after receiving birth control implants without proper warning of the device’s possible side effects.

She serves on the board of governors of Consumer Attorneys of California, the executive committee and the board of governors for the American Association for Justice, and the advisory board for Emerge California, a women’s political training program.

— Skylar Dubelko